Varun Chakravarthy Opens up on Mental Health Challenges Ahead of 2025 Asia Cup

India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy admitted it was not easy for him after he was dropped from the national team. Chakravarthy could not deliver in the 2021 T20 World Cup as he went wicketless in the three matches he played.

Subsequently, he was dropped from the side and made his comeback to the Indian team against Bangladesh in 2024. Since then, he has grabbed his opportunities with both hands and he is India’s first-choice spinner in the shortest format.

Chakravarthy opened up on his mental health challenges and said he didn’t have clarity on how to handle it. The 33-year-old gave his gratitude to the IPL and said the league helped him in making a comeback. Varun bagged 21 wickets in 15 matches in IPL 2024 and played a key role in taking Kolkata Knight Riders to glory.

Speaking to RevSportz, Varun Chakravarthy said, “It’s a very good question, as not just me, but many cricketers go through mental health challenges, as I did too, for almost three years after I was out of the team from 2021. The main reason was not having clarity of whether I would ever make a return to the team. The only thing in front of me was IPL and the domestic leagues, and I am definitely grateful for having IPL, because many other cricketers don’t have that as well.”

“But trying to make a comeback to the Indian side was my goal, so I always used to keep thinking why I’m not there and about ways in which I can improve myself. After having good IPL seasons, I felt that I should have been in the team, but still, I was not there. So everything made sense when I was picked after a long time for the Bangladesh tour last year. Yes, that phase was challenging, but the only thing I had in my control was going to practice at 5:30 in the morning, do some spot bowling and come back home and hit the gym in the evening. I kept pushing myself, and that’s how it worked. Today, I won’t regret any of that, because those hard times made me a better person and a better human being,” he added.

Chakravarthy bagged nine wickets in three matches of the Champions Trophy 2025 and played a key role in India’s successful run in the tournament. He has also picked 33 wickets in 18 T20I matches for the country.

Speaking on sealing his place in the team, he said, “It has definitely taken a long time to earn this spot, and as I have mentioned in many other places, this journey has been long. I didn’t have a vision as to whether I would make a comeback or not once I was dropped from the team, but I kept telling myself that if I get certain variations and accuracy levels, then I will be able to make a comeback into the team.”

Chakravarthy will be next seen in action in the Asia Cup.